Thursday, August 31, 2006

Giving dawah in Telugu : Islamic Publications Trust

By Aisha Khan

It is Sunday and the lanes of the otherwise busy Chatta Bazar in old city of Hyderabad sport a sleepy look. The silence inside the colony is broken when a loudspeaker blares the sound of welcome in Telugu [అందరికి ఆహ్వానం (andariki ahawanam)]. From a shamiana (canvas tent) erected in one of the lanes of Chatta Bazar, one could see bearded Muslim men speaking in chaste Telugu, welcoming one and all to the function. It is the launching of the Telugu school of journalism by the Islamic Publications Trust that is operating from this place for the past three decades.

Telugu in the old city of Hyderabad is rare to hear but here one could see Muslims promoting Telugu language. We are talking of గీతురాయి (Geeturai)the weekly magazine being published by the Islamic Publications Trust in Telugu language since 1979. On August 13, 2006 the trust started its Telugu School of Journalism which was inaugurated by A B K Prasad, the chairman of Andhra Pradesh official language commission.

Speaking at this function Syed Hussain of the trust explained that the trust was working since 1978 to dispel the myths about Islam and Muslims among non-Muslim Telugu speaking people in Andhra Pradesh.

As S M Mallick, the manager of the weekly Geeturai puts, “We have certain values and traditions that are most dear to us. We want to promote the same values and traditions through our publications. Hence we felt the need to start this journalism school in order to impart those values and ethos to students who will become good journalists and writers,” he said.

Mr Abdul Basit Anwar of the trust says that the school of journalism will be different from other schools of journalism. “Our students have been selected after a rigorous written as well as oral test. We have taken great pains to select the most suitable candidates for our mission,” he says.

Out of a total of 247 applications received, the trust has chosen only seven candidates. These students hail from different regions of the state where Telugu is the prime language. Shaik Islam is from Tadepalliudem in East Godavari, Shaik Shah Vali is from Anantapur, Shaik Bashir is from west godavari, Mohammed Mujahid from Khammam, Ishrat Parveen from Hyderabad and Srinu naik (a Lambada youth) from Nalgonda.According to Mr Syed Husain, all the students hold a Masters degree in Telugu literature, besides holding other professional qualifications. The facilities at the new school of journalism include a computer-aided lab, a printing press, staff rooms, well equipped classrooms and a library for reference.

At the same function four books published by the trust were released by the chief guest. The books are:

Other two books are దాంపతీయ నియమాలు (Dampatiya niyamalu) (rules for couples for a happy living) and prapancha matalu (a comparative study of world religions and islam).

The trust is planning to publish another 27 books in the near future. Also in the pipeline is a project to publish 107 new books on different themes and subjects on Islam.“We have already published 141 books in Telugu. And plan to do more in future,” Hussain says.

The trust also runs a website www.teluguislamiclit.org which lists the various achievements of the trust and gives updated information on the activities of the trust. The website also serves as a platform for the trust to build understanding and harmony between non-muslim Telugu speaking people and Muslims/islam.

The trust is engaged in several activities aimed towards promoting communal harmony among muslims and non-muslims. “This trust was established in 1977 by the members of “Jamat-e-Islami” to convey the message of peace and brotherhood. We do not believe in making noise. We continue our activities silently. We engage both the communities Muslims as well as non-muslims,” says Abdul Basith Anwar.

The trust also runs a postal library that lends books to readers through post. Once the reading is done, they can return the books to the trust. Similarly a mobile book shop (kanti rekha--- ray of light) was also started by the trust four months back. A van fitted with transparent glass doors and windows in which various books are displayed, moves across the state. This shop has sold books worth 4.5 lakh rupees till now. A majority of purchasers were non-muslims.

Another programme run by the trust includes dawah activity by one of its members Azharuddin among police officers. Azharuddin visits police stations, and other crime branch offices in the state to give informative lecture to policemen on Islam and muslims. He talks to them about Islam, its basic tenets, muslim practices, beliefs, holy Koran etc. The listeners include IPS officers, police commandants, inspectors, constables and home guards. He also shares with them the literature published by the trust.

Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Tribute to Telugu scholars

CHITTOOR: Telugu Language Day was celebrated here on Tuesday by the district Telugu Language Association in connection with the birthday of Gidugu Ramamoorthy. Joint Collector Rajendra Prasad paid rich tributes to literary scholars Gidugu Ramamoorthy, Gurajada Apparao and Miryala Venkatarao who had strived to develop Telugu.

Tuesday, August 29, 2006

'Morning Raga' as రాగం (Raagam) in Telugu

RK Tele Show and First Frame Entertainments are jointly bringing the famous film 'Morning Raaga' with Prakash Rao, son of ace director K Raghavendra Rao, Shabana Azmi in the lead in Telugu as 'Raagam'. It may be recalled that the original film had earned a good name even from the critics and bagged several awards.

Perizaad Zorabian played the female lead in the film. The dubbed version of the film had completed all the formalities and is set for release on September 1.

Co-producer Jagarlamudi Saibabu says, 'This film is based on music backdrop and Mani Sharma gave melodious music for the film. There was good response to the audio even before the release of the film. We are sure that the Telugu version would be a big hit like its original.'

Dialogue writer Gandham Nagaraju says, 'The film deals with the feelings of three persons and has been shot in total Telugu rural backdrop. To go in detail, it is the story of a youth who lost his mother, a mother who lost her son in the same accident, while the girl who realizes that her father was responsible for the accident. The film revolves round these three characters. It is quite a good opportunity for me to pen dialogues for such a good film.'

Telugu in official correspondence a 'must' : Mittal

MACHILIPATNAM: Collector Naveen Mittal has instructed the district administration to compulsorily ensure use of Telugu in official correspondence addressed to the citizens.

Speaking at the first meeting of the newly constituted district-level Official Language Commission here on Monday, the collector appealed to the commission members to help implement use of Telugu as official language in all departments throughout the district.

Book Review: Jiddu Krishnamurti on Education

JIDDU KRISHNAMURTI, the renowned thinker said, "The highest function of education is to bring about an integrated individual who is capable of dealing with life as a whole." For this, in consonance with academic learning there is to be a learning of outer and inner worlds. The inner is the activities of the self — one's thoughts, emotions, feelings and actions.

He communicated this perspective in talks given extensively to students, teachers and parents. He also established schools — six in India and one each in the U.K. and in the U.S.

In this book Aruna Mohan has presented the important aspects of Krishnamurti's educational philosophy to Telugu readers. The well-planned structure of the text and arrangement of the material into neat sections under appropriate headings, makes it reader-friendly.

The first chapter discusses how man's life is related to nature, things, ideas and fellow human beings.

Parents, teacher, society, student and integrated development are the other chapters that follow. Aruna Mohan's effort to present JK's perspectives in a cohesive manner is quite creditable.

Thursday, August 24, 2006

Hunger strikes with opposite purposes

When Telangana Rashtra Samithi chief K. Chandrashekhara Rao walked out of the UPA and began his hunger strike at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on August 23, he was not the first Andhra leader to use this evocative tool to pursue an emotive cause. Nearly 54 years ago, on October 19, 1952, the legendary Potti Sreeramalu went on a fast — which ended with his death on December 15 the same year.

But there is a key difference. Potti Sreeramalu’s hunger strike was to press for integrating all Telugu-speaking people into a single state; Rao’s protest is aimed at overturning that achievement and carving out a separate Telangana. The tale of these two fasts — their contrasting goals and conflicting imperatives — tells us more than contemporary Congress or TRS accounts can tell us why the Telengana issue is a lot more complex than the granting of statehood to, say, Uttarakhand or Chhattisgarh. And also why it will continue to haunt the polity even if the exit of the TRS may not affect the stability of the UPA right now.

Potti Sreeramalu’s fast unto death was historic in more ways than one. It not only led to the formation of the first state in India on a purely linguistic basis, but also paved the way for the first States Reorganisation Committee (SRC). Having freshly emerged from the anti-imperialist struggle — both against the Raj and the Nizam — many Congressmen and most communists at the time fought for the linguistic reorganisation of states. They implicitly believed, to quote Marxist literary critic Terry Eagleton, that “language is the root of all identity; to tamper with that is either poetry or treason”. A common tongue, it was felt, imbued a hitherto colonised people with a sense of solidarity and empowerment. And popular struggles revolving around this priniciple quickly gained ground through the early fifties. As a result, the administrative units under the British Raj as well as the erstwhile princely states were divided and amalgamated on the basis of language and the new states of Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, Gujarat, Maharashtra and others were born.

Andhra played a pioneering role. In 1947 the Telugu speaking people were distributed in 21 districts — nine of them were part of the Nizam’s Hyderabad state and the remaining 12 fell under the Madras Presidency. A powerful movement — championed by Congressmen like Sreeramalu as well as the communists who had been in the forefront of the Telengana armed struggle — soon began for ‘Vishalandhra’ or a separate Telugu-speaking state.

Within days of Potti Sreeramalu’s martyrdom, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru bowed to the demand and the first Andhra state comprising the Telugu-speaking areas of Madras Presidency came into being on October 1, 1953. The victorious Telugus then demanded that Madras — historically a part of the Andhra region — be made the capital. A three-member committee comprising Jawaharlal Nehru, Pattabhi Sitaramayya and C. Rajagopalachari rejected the demand, firmly decreeing that the “Telugu people should leave Madras for Tamils if they want a new state”.

That loss was partially made up three years later when the districts of Hyderabad state were integrated to form the current state of Andhra Pradesh on November 1, 1956 — and Hyderabad was declared the new capital.

The bitter opposition to a separate Telengana shared by the CPI(M), Telugu Desam and large sections of the Congress is rooted in this historical legacy. Language is not the only reason. Hyderabad too is important. “Can you imagine Maharashtra without Mumbai? How can there be an Andhra Pradesh without Hyderabad?” is a familiar refrain.

For the people of Telegana, on the other hand, linguistic identity and cultural affinity of the Telugu people no longer evoke much resonance. The Telegana region has remained under-developed even half a century after the formation of the new state. Although the two great rivers of Godavari and Krishna flow through Telengana, lack of irrigation remains central to their woes.

In contrast, Telenganites bitterly complain, coastal Andhra has not only prospered but the coastal rich have also taken over the boomtown of Hyderabad. The backwardness of Telengana, they feel, fuels the Naxalite movement. It also spawned a separatist movement led by Congress leader M. Chenna Reddy back in 1969. That petered out after Mrs Gandhi managed to co-opt Reddy who later served two stints as chief minister of the state. For

Telengana separatists, Reddy is regarded as the archetypal “betrayer” to this day.

Taunted by his own supporters that the TRS was going the Reddy way — and his separatist support base eroding by the day, K.Chandrashekhara Rao had little choice but to quit the UPA government. Since his party is confined to the Telengana region, it was not such a difficult decision to take.

But for political parties like the TDP, Congress or Left which are spread throughout the state, the issue is far more complex. The under-development of Telengana cannot be wished away. But the break-up of the first linguistic state in India’s post-Independence history can be emotionally and politically wrenching.

The problem is not confined to Andhra Pradesh alone. The demand for a separate Vidarbha has been around for a long time now. A nascent separatist movement in the Coorg (or Kodagu) region of Karnataka has also begun. Tomorrow, who knows, it could the turn of Malabar or Kutch. The NDA government’s decision to form Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh — all carved out of Hindi-speaking north India which did not witness the “language question” — was a lot simpler in a way. Besides, wedded as it is to the concept of a homogeneous “one people, one nation, one culture” ideal, the Sangh Parivar has never been a proponent of linguistic states.

Telengana, thus, raises more fundamental questions. Has language as the root of identity, as the basis of cultural solidarity ceased to matter? Have the intangible affinities that informed popular struggles in the aftermath of Independence been overtaken by the all-consuming desire for a more tangible “development”? Are the two mutually exclusive or can they go hand in hand? At the moment, at least, there are no clear answers.

Awareness meet on Telugu

Thursday August 24 2006 10:29 IST

VISAKHAPATNAM: By drafting all the documents related to district administration in Telugu language, one could assist the enhancement of usage of the language, opined Andhra Pradesh Official Language Committee chairman ABK Prasad.

Speaking at an awareness meet on Telugu language here on Wednesday, Prasad said the awareness meet was being conducted 40 years after the language committee was established, which was quite harmful for the development of the language.

It is high time that Andhraites should think about the development of their mother tongue.

Nizamabad district has achieved the status of using Telugu language in day-to-day office work and has got good results as well, he said and added that Telugu language should become the official language in true sense in the entire State. It was the responsibility of the officials to communicate with people in their language, Prasad said. Collector Anil Kumar Singhal, municipal commissioner N Srikant and rural SP JG Murali were present.Courtesy: NewIndPress

Sunday, August 20, 2006

National Seminar for Telugu teachers, Hyderabad, Aug 21, 22

Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University is organising a national seminar for Telugu teachers from different States on August 21 and 22. The seminaris to be inaugurated by Minister for Primary Education N. Rajyalaxmi, according to a press release issued here on Saturday.

మీరు ఏ బ్రౌజర్ (browser) వాడుతారు ?

I am presently using Firefox 2.0 (beta) for regular surfing, Opera for reading RSS news feeds, Konqueror & Firefox when using Mandrake Linux, and occasionally also IE 7.0 whenever I want to check out how a webpage (especially one containing Telugu unicode) might be rendered in the most widely used browser.

Saturday, August 19, 2006

SMS to be available in Telugu from next month

Staff Reporter

Can be accessed for Rs. 99 for a download

HYDERABAD: Soon you can do the finger numbing universal exercise of SMS (Short Messaging Service) in Telugu with a joint venture private firm about to make it available from September 1 all over Andhra Pradesh.

Telugu SMS can be accessed for a price of Rs. 99 for a single download at about 400 select outlets throughout the State. Veteran actor Akkineni Nageswara Rao formally launched the service on Saturday.

Supr Tradelinks Pvt. Ltd. (suprtradelinks@yahoo.com) and Random Infotech have joined hands to introduce the service with the latter's Chief Executive Officer, C. Premanand pointing out a majority of people were losing out on content as only English was used for SMSing.

Moreover, SMS in other languages too were being sent in English, which gave them the idea of a Telugu SMS. Using the transliteration method, SMS in Telugu can be sent using the same keyboard available on the mobile phone, he said.

Application can be downloaded on phone and even those not familiar with Telugu can send an SMS in the language. "Dynamic content including information about agriculture as also entertainment can be sent in Telugu," said Mr. Premanand (premanand@randominfotech.com).

Telugu browser

Also in the pipeline was the launch of a Telugu browser from which movies too can be transcribed into the mobile phones, he said stating that his firm had already introduced SMS in Tamil and Malayalam.

Mr. Nageswara Rao welcomed the service and said despite English being the world language the mother tongue should never be neglected. Noted poet M.S. Reddy appreciated the service and read out couplets in praise of Telugu. Supr Tradelinks Managing Director N. Umamaheswara Rao spoke.

Telugu gets a boost in SVU

Degrees, signboards to be in Telugu too along with English

TIRUPATI: Degrees will be awarded in Telugu too along with English in Sri Venkateswara University. The varsity's Executive Council which met here with the Vice-Chancellor, S. Jayarama Reddy in the chair, also decided that all sign-boards in the college, university office and elsewhere on the campus should be in Telugu too. The idea is to increase use of Telugu on the campus and give the language its rightful place, said the V-C.

Another resolution was to integrate the university's Kadapa-based PG Centre with the Yogi Vemana University coming up there. Another Kadapa-based institution, C.P. Brown Research Centre also would be now brought under the purview of the Yogi Vemana University.

HYDERABAD: Usage of Telugu for official business in all Government departments was imperative to save the language, the Chairman of Andhra Pradesh Official Language Commission A.B.K. Prasad said here on Thursday. "In fact, it should be taken up as a social obligation by every officer."

Speaking at a review meeting of officials of Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Medak and Mahabubnagar on the usage of Telugu in Government offices, he lamented that Telugu did not get the prominence it deserved even 40 years after a law was enacted for the purpose. He blamed the inaction of successive Governments for the plight of Telugu in the State today.

Looking up

Mr. Prasad, however, said things were looking up and there was a discernible change in the approach of officials over the last one year. A series of awareness programmes were held in 14 districts and the winds of change were blowing there.

Explaining the changes, he said courts too had started delivering judgements in Telugu. Eighteen such judgements were brought out in the form of a booklet and sent to various courts to encourage judges deliver verdicts in Telugu only.

He said Nizamabad district stood first in the State in usage of Telugu with 98 per cent of official work now being transacted in Telugu. In fact, 30 offices were now using Telugu for their entire official business. He pointed out that mandal level officials were showing genuine interest for safeguarding the language than their higher-ups at the district-level.

Review committees

He wanted the new members of the review committees to visit mandals allotted to them and ensure implementation of Telugu. Work at the Collector's office should also be reviewed at least once a week.

Ranga Reddy Collector L. Prem Chandra Reddy assured that officials would be sensitised on the benefits of using Telugu for official work and efforts made to improve the usage.

Kaaluva Mallaiah and Chandrashekhara Reddy, Commission members, reminded that people can express themselves better in their mother tongue and using English for official purposes was only leading to glaring mistakes in official documents.

శ్రీకాంత్ జగబాతుల : President of India Gold Medal winner, 2005-06

Internet connectivity in rural areas at cheap rates? Well, this could be a reality if Srikanth's dream comes true.

Meet Srikanth Jagabathula, IIT's pride, the President of India gold medal winner for 2005-06 for scoring the highest marks among all batches at Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay.

After an enviable stint at the IIT, Srikanth is all set to fly to the United States to pursue his studies at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After five years he plans to come back to Indian to start his own communications company.

As a kid he dreamt of becoming an engineer. Somehow he always thought an engineer's job would be very fascinating. He heard about the IIT when he was in the 7th standard. Since then IIT was his aim. After clearing his 10th class, he religiously worked towards cracking the IIT-Joint Entrance Examination. A rank of 38 at the IIT-JEE meant a smooth entry into IIT-Bombay. Srikanth, who hails from Hyderabad, was always a topper in school. Mathematics and physics were his favourite subjects, but he dreaded biology and chemistry.

A desire to top in everything he did from his schooldays helped him score high grades and he always lived up to his parents' expectations. Studies were always a priority for Srikanth and his efforts won him several awards.

From securing the first rank in the board exam in the 7th standard, securing the 8th rank in the Andhra Pradesh State Science Talent Exam when he was in the 8th standard to securing the President of India gold medal for topping across all the batches in 2005-06 in IIT-B, Srikanth's success is an inspiring story.

Any IIT-ians in the family? "No," he says, "my father has retired from the technical education department in Andhra Pradesh and my mother is a homemaker. They are really happy to see me achieve my goals though they are sad to see me go aboard for further studies."

His role models: Apple Computer founder Steve Jobs, Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, Infosys founder N R Narayana Murthy and Nandan Nilekani. Srikanth is excited about his next stint at MIT and takes us through his journey from IIT to MIT.

My IIT experience

"IIT has been a dream come true for me. Initially, it was very difficult as I came from Hyderabad. It (Mumbai) was a new city and for the first time I was staying away from the family. But from the second year, everything was perfect and I made good friends here.

It is really a great learning experience. IIT helps you excel as it provides you with the best facilities and faculty.

My mantra for success

I have a desire to excel. I am very organised, am always on time, and have deep love for the subjects I learn. I have always done things I like to do, which is very important.

Interests

Reading books and participating in debates. I also like watching action-packed films and thrillers. On OBC quota.

The 50 per cent quota is not a good idea. The focus should be on improving basic education. Unless you get the basics right, there is no point introducing the quota system at the highest level. There are many backward regions in the country, so the focus should be towards a region-based development than a caste-based reservation system.

Next move

"After I joined IIT, I heard more about MIT from my seniors who studied there. I'm very happy that I got selected. I will be joining MIT soon to do my PhD. I'm very excited about it. I have got a scholarship which will waive the entire tuition fees and I will get a stipend of about $950 a month," he grins.

Advice to IIT aspirants

Don't get bogged down by pressure, many people are very talented, but it is important how you perform on the entrance day. You have to prepare well for two years, you must learn to cope with the pressure.

On India

Earlier foreign jobs offered much better prospects. But now all the multinational corporations have set shop here. There are plenty of opportunities in India. So there is no need to actually go abroad. India is on a growth path and in 5 to 6 years there will be big changes in India.

Future plans

I would like to come back to India and start my own company. It will basically be a communications company. The idea is to develop products to provide cost-effective Net connectivity and communication facilities in rural India.

Now the cost is a big hindrance to Net penetration. My aim will be to remove the barriers and make communication effective and increase its reach.

And if you were to join a company, which would it, be?

Google is an example of efficiency and best products. It will be a great and interesting place to work in and learn.

HYDERABAD: Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy on Sunday said the people need to learn from former Union Minister, Karan Singh, how to serve the nation and that a new India could emerge only if youth were given a vision and channelised their `tremendous' energy.

He was speaking after releasing a Telugu translation of Dr. Singh's autobiography. Former MP Yarlagadda Lakshmi Prasad translated the autobiography. Dr. Reddy said that after Dr. Prasad's book on veteran CPI (M) leader P. Sundarayya, this was the second volume he was releasing.

A former Kashmir ruler and a Minister in Indira Gandhi's Cabinet, Dr. Singh called for people's dedication and involvement of youth in transforming the country, which could play a pivotal role in shaping contours of a global society. There were problems that needed to be resolved — maintaining parliamentary decorum, controlling corruption and violence and poverty alleviation measures, he said.

Justice G. Raghuram of the Andhra Pradesh High Court described Dr. Singh as a man of letters, a poet, a liberal, a statesman, an administrator and a skilled negotiator.

Union Minister for Coal, Dasari Narayana Rao, presided. Former Karnataka Governor V.S. Rama Devi and former Union Minister, P. Upendra both of whom had written foreword for the book, were present.

Speakers hailed Dr. Singh as a nationalist, philosopher and multi-linguist.

Raja-Lakshmi award for S.P. Balasubrahmanyam

HYDERABAD: The prestigious Raja-Lakshmi award for 2006 will be presented to S.P. Balasubrahmanyam, popular playback singer.

The award carries a cash prize of Rs. 1,00,000, a citation and a memento. It will be presented to the singer at a function in Visakhapatnam on November 19, according to P.V. Ramaniah Raja, managing trustee of the Sri Raja-Lakshmi Foundation in a press note.

Balasubrahmanyam will also receive Dr. K.V. Rao and Dr. Jyoti Rao award of $ 2,000 given in association with the Telugu Fine Arts Society, New Jersey. A prolific and gifted singer, Balu, as he is popularly known, is famous for his incredible vocal range, rich voice and mastery of style, technique and control.

Making a debut in Telugu film music as a singer in 1966 with `Sri Sri Sri Maryada Ramanna,' he has rendered over 36,000 songs in Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Hindi and Malayalam languages.

He holds the Guinness record for the most number of song recordings by a male singer.

Thursday, August 17, 2006

Google WiFi launched in Mountain View

Google yesterday launched it's free WiFi network ( http://wifi.google.com/support ) in it's home city of Mountain View. It is a municipal wireless network covering the entire city of Mountain View, with free internet access for both residents and visitors.

Sunday, August 13, 2006

Mohan Krishna receives Gollapudi award

CHENNAI: Yet another dream of a director making his debut in cinema got recognition and honour.

ఇంద్రగంటి మోహన్‌ కృష్ణ (Indraganti Mohan Krishna) received the Gollapudi Srinivas National Award for 2005 for his Telugu film, గ్రహణం (Grahanam).

He was the ninth recipient of the award instituted by the Gollapudi Srinivas Memorial Foundation.

The award function on Saturday evening was filled with memories of Gollapudi Srinivas, the debut director who died in 1992 while shooting a film, ప్రేమ పుస్తకం (Prema Pusthakam) in the rocky part of Visakhapatnam coastline.

Everyone shared the same feeling - the audience, the awardee or the guests - one of empathy, jubilation and honour. Gollapudi Srinivas's family got several rounds of applause for having turned a personal tragedy to a celebration of new ventures.

The chief guest, actor Aamir Khan, had to make a small speech before the scheduled one to satisfy the enthusiastic audience waiting to hear him. He lauded the family's effort and spirit to turn a personal sorrow to commemoration of debut film directors. "Being a parent, I empathise with the feeling of another parent," he said. He also appreciated the award winner and his team for the debut venture.

Earlier, his speech was interrupted by few youngsters claiming to be a part of an organisation, `Youth for Social Change' raising slogans against Mr. Khan for endorsing soft drinks. They were whisked away by the police.

The guests commended Mr. Mohan Krishna. The award presented for excellence in film debut direction consists of a cash prize of Rs.1.50 lakh and a memento. Accepting the award from the guests, Mr. Mohan Krishna called it an "unreal and overwhelming experience".

To him, the award was the "greatest interpretation of sorrowful memory". It was not just a recognition but jubilation of hard work. He dedicated the award to his mother Janaki and his team.

His film `Grahanam' is based on a short story of renowned Telugu writer Chalam, దోషగుణం (Doshagunam) that explored ways such as superstitions by which female sexuality was controlled in a patriarchial society.

The jury who selected the awardee, director Singeetam Srinivasa Rao and film critic Kalyanaraman were honoured.

Ashtavadhanam is a very rare telugu literary feat. In Ashtavadhanam, there are eight Prucchakas, five of whom pose literary challenges to an Avadhani sitting amidst them. "Prucchaka" is someone who asks. The Prucchakas pose challenges, urge the poet to recite poems, subject to certain constraints, placing hurdles all along the way. The Avadhani surmounts these hurdles and recites several poems, conforming to an elaborate and complex set of rules of grammar (known as Chandassu). Avadhani uses only his memory without the aid of pen and paper. The Avadhani, taking the cue from each Prucchaka, recites the first line of each of the poems, returns to the first Prucchaka to start with the second line of each poem and so on till all the poems are recited to completion. Each poem has 4 lines, which means there are 4 rounds in all. The more accomplished the Avadhani, the more beautiful his poem is.

Wednesday, August 09, 2006

Telugu to be Official medium

Ongole, Aug. 9: B. Ramarao, DRO and secretary of the district Official Language Implementation Committee (OLIC) said that efforts were on to make administrative correspondence in Telugu only in all the government departments.

Mr Ramarao presided over a meeting conducted by OLIC at the Prakasam Bhavan conference hall on Wednesday. Members of the OLIC attended the review meet, which was held for the first time in the district.

Addressing the gathering, the DRO said that officials were trying to make administrative correspondence in Telugu only so that common people could understand the activities of the government.� He added that officials were rejecting files prepared in English. He recalled that officials were replying only in Telugu to people during grievances day.

Slogans highlighting the significance of Telugu would be put on display in all the government offices and schools, Mr Ramarao said.

Officials will allot some mandals to Official Language Implementation Committee members to monitor the implementation of Telugu in government offices there.� Administrative officer Mr Ramalingeswara Rao also participated in the meet.

Sunday, August 06, 2006

శ్రీకాకుళం: The village that inspired a classic

TENALI: Vijayanagara king కృశ్ణదేవరాయ(Krishnadevaraya) was believed to have got the inspiration to write his classic ఆముక్తమల్యద (Amuktamalyada) after taking rest in a kalyana mandapa in this little known village in Krishna district.

The classic play చింతామణి (Chintamani) was also believed to have had its lead character hailing from this village.

These are some of the interesting aspects, which came to light with the efforts of an award-winning retired teacher, Ponukumati Venkata Subbaiah, who had embarked on a gigantic task of chronicling the history of Srikakulam village of Ghantasala mandal in Krishna district from all possible sources.

The village is just four km from Gajulanka village in Guntur district and is considered the first place for pilgrimage in the Krishna delta region.

Mr. Subbaiah had referred to various sources like books and inscriptions concerning the village.

Temple history

The book begins from the history of the Vishnu temple. There were evidences of the early Andhras settling in the village and the building the temple in the village started in 4th century A.D.

The Satavahanas' early capital was Srikakulam and there are evidences to prove that this was the first capital of the Andhras, claims the author in this book. During his military exploits to Kalinga, Krishnadevaraya was believed to have performed ekadasa vratham and took rest in the kalyana mandapam in the village.

It was during that time that he got a dream in which Kakulaswamy appeared in his dream and instructed him to write the Amuktamalyada and dedicate it to Lord Venkateshwara.

Even today, the locals call the kalyana mandapa as ఆముక్తమల్యద మండప (Amuktamalyada mandapa) and believe that taking a nap there would enable one to have darshan of Kakulaswamy.

The shrine was also described in Bramhanda Puranam and Skanda Puranam. There were evidences of `devadasi' system that existed during the times in the region.

The book would be released in a special function to be held by the Sarada Sahiti Samskruta Samithi at Tenali on Sunday.

Book Review: చింతనామృతం

MUST NEWSPAPERS that inculcate a scientific spirit and rational outlook among the readers devote space for articles and features of religious import, contemplated a newspaper editor in Telugu for a long time. His conclusion was that such features would help develop an ethical base for human conduct and thus have contemporary social relevance.

This book is a collection of 80 articles on religious themes written by the author for a Telugu daily. He intersperses suitable quotes from Sanskrit and Telugu literature, annotates them effectively by drawing relevance to present times. The articles espouse self-discipline, right kind of living, discrimination and discerning wisdom, true spirit of patriotism, role models for humanity and sense of propriety in human action.

The present-day reader, particularly the youth do not have access to the ancient wisdom. They are unable to appreciate them without the help of commentarial analysis of the precepts. Such features fulfil this need.

The author explains right conduct in public life effectively. This compilation will help to strengthen the moral fabric of society and is therefore commendable.

బొమ్మలాట set to enthral audience again

Stage play throws light on plight of puppetry artistes; to be staged at Kalabharati today

The only Telugu play staged at the National Theatre Festival in Delhi since 1988

Prior to బొమ్మలాట (Bommalata), Satyanand has the distinction of staging అడవి దీవితీలు (Adavi Diviteelu) for 55 days without a break

THEY ARE REAL: Satyanand and Sarika, the lead pair of `Bommalata', rehearsing in Visakhapatnam on Monday

VISAKHAPATNAM: A string puppet show, which Satyanand saw in his childhood, has resulted in the creation of his masterpiece `Bommalata'. The play which is the only Telugu one staged at the National Theatre Festival in Delhi since 1988, has created several records.

It was the only stage play which successfully ran for 102 days continuously in Visakhapatnam during 1992. The highlight was that the audience bought tickets and watched the shows.

The `Bommalata' troupe was rehearsing at the Satyanand Film Training Institute, when this paper caught up with them on Monday.

"It is an attempt to prove the power of performing arts to bring about a change in society. It reflects dismal state of affairs of puppetry artistes and suggests a change in their outlook to gain patronage of the public.

The need to retain such art forms for the benefit of posterity is another highlight of the play," says Satyanand who is the writer and director besides plays an important character in `Bommalata.'

Central characters

Though the play has completed over 250 runs since it was first staged in 1988, the central characters `Ketigadu', `Bangarakka' and `Alla Tappayya' remain unchanged. All other characters have kept changing but the central characters couldn't be changed as there were no substitutes.

"I met nine puppet groups in different parts of the State and interacted with them and recorded their performances to know more about their dialogue delivery, use of musical instruments and songs," says Satyanand.

Prior to `Bommalata', Satyanand had the distinction of staging `Adavi Diviteelu' for 55 days without a break. "The audience had high expectations about my next play. They were paying for the shows and it was but natural for them to expect wholesome entertainment. I took ample time and worked on the experiment," he recalled.

No mean feat

It is not easy for humans to act like puppets but Satyanand took up the challenge and trained an entire team and the result was there for everyone to see.

In these days when many films celebrate silver and golden jubilee, it is no mean achievement that a stage show could complete 100 days with good patronage till the end. It was last staged in Bhubaneswar in 2002.

Those who have missed it can enjoy the play at Kalabharati auditorium on Tuesday.